Tag: protein

Nutrition, Videos

Research: The Healthiest Grain for Vegans | 14 Grains, Ranked

Miche

In today’s video, I’m answering a question that quite a few of you have asked: what’s the healthiest grain? There is of course no single straightforward answer to that, but I used my scientific expertise from getting my PhD and publishing studies to create a metric that scores grains in terms of how much they help fill in vegans’ micronutrient categories that tend to be lowest (especially wfpb vegans). See the details in the video!

Here’s a link to the video page, or you can watch it below:

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Links mentioned in the video:

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Nutrient table

GrainMy scoreIronMagnesiumSeleniumZincFiberProtein
Grits / Polenta389717569
Millet439203111113
White rice4610621919
Brown rice565201714710
Bulgur5813253172716
Sorghum70113214131014
Buckwheat768419181515
Barley7781539152212
Quinoa8114359231216
Oats88122428241315
Amaranth10523441820916
Farro138112680211917
Kamut153122588281719
Table: the percent daily value provided by each grain in each category in 200 calories (for average height 5’6″ woman), and my score for each grain. Note that it’s all relative, so it doesn’t matter how tall you are or how much you eat, or anything like that! For the nutrients, the winner in each category is bolded.
Recipes

Protein-Packed Vegan Chili Recipe

Miche

Today Iā€™m teaming up with Goode Foods to bring you a recipe that’ll help keep you warm in the cold weather: chili!

Iā€™ve been eating Thanksgiving leftovers for almost every. single. meal. since we celebrated it last weekend. I guess thatā€™s what happens when you make 7 dishes for 4 people. šŸ˜‰ And after all that heavy comfort food, all I wanted this weekend was something veggie packed and oil freeā€”but still comforting. And this chili fit the bill perfectly!

I also made tofu sofritas to put a fun spin on it and up the protein factor. Itā€™s so chewy and delicious, and a perfect contrast for the melt-in-your-mouth beans and veggies!

So, thank you Goode foods for inspiring me to make this! Iā€™m a big fan not only because their canned beans & veggies are delicious and grown by local farmers, but they support veganismā€”all their products are vegan, and they team up with vegan bloggers (like me!) to get more healthy vegan recipes out there.

Chili Ingredients:

  • Large yellow onion, chopped
  • 4 large cloves garlic
  • 3/4c chopped bell pepper
  • 1 large carrot, chopped
  • 4 large celery stalks, chopped
  • 3 – 15oz cans of pinto and black beans (I used Goode Foods: 2 cans black, 1 can pinto–any combo works!)
  • 2 – 15oz cans diced tomatoes
  • 1 – 15oz can corn (I used Goode Foods)
  • 2 tbsp chili powder
  • 2 tsp cumin
  • 2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 2 tsp lime juice
  • 1 tsp maple syrup
  • 1 tsp dried cilantro (optional)
  • Salt to taste

Chili Directions:

  1. Mince or press garlic (I use this garlic press) and add to a large pot over medium heat, along with the onion. Saute until the onion begins to get translucent, about 3-5 mins.
  2. Add bell pepper, carrots, celery, chili powder, cumin, and smoked paprika to pot. Saute about 2 mins, or until veggies begin to get tender.
  3. Add the beans and tomatoes to the pot, and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. You want the veggies to be tender, and the beans to be very soft and start falling apart.
  4. Stir in the lime juice, maple syrup, can of corn, and the tofu sofritas.
  5. Enjoy on its own, or top with vegan sour cream, or cornbread muffins (stay tuned for that recipe!)

Tofu Sofritas Ingredients:

  • 1 block super firm tofu (~400g)
  • 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
  • 3 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp lime juice
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika

Tofu Sofritas Directions:

  1. Combine nutritional yeast, soy sauce, lime juice, syrup, and smoked paprika in a small bowl. Stir until combined.
  2. Using your fingers, crumble the tofu into a large skillet. Pour in the sauce you made in step 1, and stir until tofu is evenly coated.
  3. Saute tofu on medium heat, stirring frequently, until it browns. (The drier it is, the chewier it’ll be in the chili!)
  4. Remove from heat and set aside until step 4 of the chili.

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Recipes

Raw Hemp Brownie Recipe [High protein]

Miche

I have been really into hemp lately.

(For cooking, that is!)

A few months ago I ordered some hemp protein powder to experiment with adding extra protein to my smoothies–I’ve been weightlifting more and more lately, and want to give my muscles the best possible chance to grow!

(Side note: a vegan diet does provide more than enough protein on its own without additions of protein powder. I’m just trying this for the potential gainz šŸ˜‰ )

And something crazy happened: I actually enjoyed the taste of it in my smoothies. I’ve never liked a protein powder before. But I love how hemp actually has a nice earthy flavor, almost like avocado or something. And then the addiction began: I picked up hemp seeds too. (Because who doesn’t want more omega-3?)

So I started trying to find ways to incorporate hemp seeds & protein powder into more and more things. And I’ve been loving raw desserts in this heat lately and was craving chocolate (more than usual!)….

And voila, hemp brownies were born!

My favorite hempy concoction thus far. I’ve made them at least 10 times in the last 3 months–the only other things I make that much are my favorite salad (which I will post someday, I promise) and my favorite smoothie.

Ingredients:

  • 1 heaping cup pitted medjool dates
  • 1/3c hulled hemp seeds (I use these)
  • 3 tbsp almond butter
  • 6 tbsp unsweetened hemp protein powder (I use this kind)
  • 2.5 tbsp cocoa (or cacao)
  • 2 tbsp water (or more, until they stick together like dough but arenā€™t wet)
  • 2 tbsp almonds (optional)

Directions:

  1. Add all ingredients except almonds to food processor, and pulse until smooth.
  2. If you want some crunch, add almonds and pulse until theyā€™re broken down to your desired size (like 1/5 of an almond for me). Add more water if needed to get them to a doughy texture.
  3. Press into a pan and refrigerate for 3+ hours.
  4. Cut and serve! (Theyā€™d also be good in bliss ball shape)

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Recipes

Vegan Zucchini Muffin Recipe + High Protein Option [Low Fat, Whole Wheat]

Miche

If you’re a vegetable gardener, then you know about that midsummer avalanche of zucchini & other summer squashes. A time that’s both exciting–because hey, it’s incredible getting so much food from just one squash plant–and overwhelming, because using up all the zucchini gets to be a task.

If you don’t get creative with it, you run a serious risk of getting sick of zucchini.

So I try to keep coming up with new uses and recipes for it. Last year I turned my zucchinis into lasagna, chocolate muffins (I made them every week for months), pesto noodles, kebabs, veggie roasts, and a failed attempt at oven zucchini chips. I still couldn’t use them all up, from ONE plant, even with help from my fiance!

So far this year, I’ve made squash boats, (successful!) zucchini chips, and now these protein muffins. And I have 2 plants this year… time to get serious.

I think these muffins will replace my chocolate zucchini muffin obsession from last year, because they are seriously delicious. Especially considering they’re whole wheat, low fat (in fact, fat free if you leave out the walnuts & chocolate chips), and have both protein powder and vegetables!

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp ground flaxseed
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1/3 cup nondairy milk (I used soy)
  • 1/4 cup applesauce (or try pumpkin puree)
  • 1 cup grated zucchini
  • 1 and 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1/4 cup plain hemp protein powder*
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/3 cup vegan semisweet chocolate chips (optional)
  • 1/2 cup walnut pieces (optional)

* If you don’t want the protein, just use 1/4c whole wheat flour instead. Or on the flip side, you can try replacing some of the flour with more protein powder! You can experiment with other protein powders too, but I find plain unsweetened hemp to be the most flour-like and I can’t even taste it in the muffins.

Directions:

  • Preheat oven to 350 F, and grease a standard dozen muffin pan.
  • Combine flaxseed, sugar, milk, and applesauce in a bowl. Set aside while you grate the zucchini.
  • Add the zucchini to the bowl with the wet ingredients, then add flour, then the rest of the ingredients.
  • Stir until just combined, and pour evenly into the muffin cups.
  • Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. (Note, you’re only looking for batter on the toothpick–if you hit a chocolate chip, it’ll never be clean!)

Recipe inspired by Nora Cooks’ zucchini bread!

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